A Most Deadly Game
by Sanru
Summary: It takes one decision to make an enemy for life. During his training in Central America, Leonardo angered one of its most powerful men. Now Leo is in a race to prevent his brothers from paying the price of his actions.
1. Chapter 1: Looking Through a Fog

Disclaimer: I own them… Yes, I'm being sarcastic… Can't you take a joke?

Author Notes: Awhile back, I got this sudden urge to write a multipart Leonardo-centered fic. I've always felt that Leo has gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to popularity polls and, therefore, few to none in the way of him-centered-fanfiction So… yeah… this is my attempt to make a Leo centered fic. I'm not use to writing stories with Leo as the main protagonist so, please, bear with me for the first couple chapters till I get use to writing with him as the main character.

Also, sorry if my attempts to use Spanish make anyone cringe. I only know pieces of it.

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A Most Deadly Game

Chapter 1: Looking Through a Fog

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He felt fuzzy which immediately told him that something was wrong. The detached feeling that seemed to spread throughout his entire body further alarmed him. His thoughts were disjointed and muddled. He was having a hard time trying to remember what had happened in the past five minutes that had lead up to this fuzzy warm feeling. His mind kept going backwards and forwards at random intervals confusing him even more then he already was. He was seriously bothered by the fact that at one moment he would be contemplating the warm fuzzy feeling and the next he would be think of the teddy bear that he had gotten for his fifth birthday.

Despite the detached feeling he had with his body, he could tell he was lying face down on a hard and rather uncomfortable surface. Focusing what little attention he had, he moved his fingers the barest of inches across the surface he was laying on. There was a rough and gritty feeling to whatever it was. Words floated through his head as he tried to think of what he could possibly be laying on but none of them seemed to be making any sense. He silently cursed he drugs in his system. He couldn't think like this.

That was when everything seemed to suddenly snap into place. He and his brothers had been out for a late night jog when the rooftop they were on exploded into a billowing cloud of smoke. The burning in his throat and lungs had been terrible and he heard the echoing coughs coming from his brothers as they too tried to rid whatever that gas was from their lungs. He dimly remembered a sharp jolt as he fell to his knees and then the graceless flop to the rooftop as the drug did its job. From the initial burst of smoke to the time he had fallen to the rooftop, barely a minute had passed. Whatever the drug was it had done its job well.

His rapidly dimming senses suddenly warned him of the approaching footsteps. He knew he had to get up. He had to protect his family, but as it was all he could do was flop his head off to the side. He wanted to growl in frustration but nothing escaped him. His eyes slowly blinked opened again to thin slits. He felt so stupid. How could he have not known that his eyes were open?

With this new found knowledge he looked over the part of the roof he could see. He was disappointed that he wasn't facing the way the footsteps were coming from and he knew he didn't have the energy to turn his head to look the other way. What he could see was one of his brothers. Raphael was lying on his side maybe less than ten feet away from him. Other than the barest of movements related to breathing, there was on other signs of life from him. He found it hard to believe that the drug, despite its potency, had completely knocked his brother out. Raphael had always needed larger amounts of medication then the rest of them just because of his size and muscle density. It was something that Donatello always pointed out when giving Raph any kind of medication or anesthesia.

If he could have, Leo would have jumped up and turned to face their adversaries. Since he could see Raph that meant that Mikey and Don were closest to their assailants and in more danger then either Raph or him. He wanted to move, it was his job to protect his younger brothers and keep them safe while they were out of the lair, but other than blinking his eyes he remained motionless on the ground. He couldn't remember the last time he had been so helpless.

A combat boot stepped into his line of sight as someone stepped over his head. He hurriedly closed them till he could barely see out of them. He didn't want anyone to know that he was still awake. His body had been immobilized but his mind was still functioning even if it was a little slow and jumbled. The more information that he could learn from his captors the easier it would be to escape from them later. The man who had stepped over him knelt down at his side and set an AK-47 down next to his thigh, partially obscuring Leo's vision. Leo revised his earlier thought, adding to it 'if they were alive later'.

His body was rolled over so that he was resting on his shell but his head remained stationary. He had wanted to see what was happening to Mikey and Don but he just couldn't move his head. Thanks to the drug, he lacked the strength and mental capacity for it. Now he really did feel defenseless. His natural instincts were beginning to kick in, warning him he was in danger on his shell and he needed to flip over immediately. Hands were on him as the man and what felt like two of his friends searched for something on him. He noticed that one hand in particular was resting against his throat, fingers lightly pressing against his carotid. Mentally he breathed a sigh of relief. If they were taking his pulse then there was a good chance that they wanted him alive. He could only hope that they were taking his brothers' pulses as well.

A low growl followed instantly by the click of a safety being disengaged made Leo's blood run cold. He silently told Raph to calm down as he looked to where his brother was laying. Raph had also been rolled onto his shell and three men were leaning over him. Unlike the three men over Leonardo, these men each had a small hand gun pointing down at Raph waiting for something. Leo knew that he had to do something –anything- to prevent Raph from getting shot but, before he could figure something out, Raphael moaned and his eyes fluttered open.

The three guns jerked at the same time as the silencers on them kept any sound from going off. Leo's breath caught in his throat and his eyes travelled fearfully to his brother's chest. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as he saw three darts projecting out of his brother's shoulders. _He's alive, just drugged_, Leo thought to himself as he relaxed slightly. If they were taking such care to keep them drugged then they definitely wanted them alive. And, as long as they were alive, there was the chance to escape.

He felt the man frisking him pull something from his belt and there was a clatter as whatever it was got tossed aside. There were two echoing clatters from behind him that told Leo that Mikey and Don had also lost whatever had been taken from their belts. He couldn't see what had been removed from his belt but he could see Raph. He watched as one of the men next to his brother pulled his shell cell out of his belt and tossed it off to the side. Now he and his brothers had lost their communication equipment and the tracers in the phones. No one was going to be able to track them now. Leonardo had an uneasy feeling about where this attack was going. They were being turtlenapped and there was no chance of calling in back up on this one.

His wrist was grabbed and before he had a chance to think about resisting, he was lifted up and thrown over a man's shoulder. Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight on Mikey and Don already thrown over the shoulders of two other men. He heard a grunt from behind him and if he could have he would have smirked. He had to pick up Raph once and he hoped he never had to do it again. Raphael was no lightweight and lifting his dead weight could easily strain, pull, and tear muscles. He would have felt sorry for the man lifting his brother but right now anything that would make it more difficult to take them away was highly appreciated.

As the man carrying him turned and headed across the roof, Leo realized that he was having a harder and harder time keeping everything in focus. He had given up trying to keep his eyes open. He really had desire to stare at his kidnapper's rear end anyways. He wanted to keep his focus for as long as possible so that he could learn at least why they were taking them prisoner and better yet who. If it was Bishop's doing, Leo mentally swore to put that man in a position where going after them would be the last thing on his mind. The agent would be more worried about finding someone to feed him through a straw then tracking down his family.

As he fought to keep from sliding completely away into oblivion one of the men spoke. It took his befuddled mind a moment to realize why it was so hard to comprehend what the men were saying. They were speaking Spanish and though Leonardo had only learned pieces of the language he knew that _cargar_ and _muelle_ both meant respectively to _take on board_ and _docks_. That could only mean that he and his brothers were being taken onto a ship which meant escape would be that much harder than it would have been if they were being taken across the land. Leonardo groaned in exasperation. There were only so many places that they could go on a boat that was in the middle of an ocean and Leo didn't like the idea of taking over the entire ship. Donatello was good with electronics but even he couldn't know how to function an entire ship on his own. Leo had to remind himself that at least they weren't being taken to an airplane. He didn't even want to think of the list of problems that could go wrong trying to escape from one of those.

Suddenly Leonardo became aware of how the man carrying him had stopped walking forward. It was as if he was expecting something to happen. Leo had only a moment to wonder about this new development before he felt three pricks on his skin. It was then that the teenaged terrapin realized that he had groaned out loud while thinking of ways to escape and that the same fate that had befallen a semi-conscious Raph had happened to him. The dart that had stuck him on the back of his neck hurt the worst but the two in his arms weren't far behind in the pain ratings. His last conscious thought was the disappointment that he had been unable to learn more about their kidnappers.


	2. Chapter 2: A Deadly Challenge

Disclaimer: I own them… Yes, I'm being sarcastic… Can't you take a joke?

Author Notes: Kudos to anyone who figured out this came from one of Don's memories in Picking Up the Pieces. After I wrote that scene this plot bunny kept expanding to the point of insanity, demanding to be typed. And even if this is a Leo-centered story I'm going to have to cross over into the other turtles' perspectives to have everything come together.

Warning: Alcohol use referenced, blood spilling and carpet staining in this chapter. Let me know if this is enough to prompt the rating to change any.

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A Most Deadly Game

Chapter 2: A Deadly Challenge

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The first thing that Leo became aware of as he slowly floated back down to earth was that he was lying face down on what felt like a plush carpet. He didn't have the strength to open his eyes just yet so he had to rely on his other senses tell him where he was. Other than the plush feeling below him, his sense of touch was telling him that wherever he was the air was moist and hot. He definitely wasn't in New York anymore. He guessed that makes sense, he had dim memories of being chained down to a floor that rocked back and forth slowly. They had taken him on a ship. The only question was now was where was his brothers and how were they going to get home?

Leo knew that just by lying there he wasn't going to get anything accomplished. He had to get moving, he had to find his brothers, and then he could worry about getting them all home. He shifted slightly on the carpet, trying to find out if anything was holding him down, and was pleasantly surprised that he wasn't being restrained in any way. This slight shift had also revealed that his katanas were still strapped to a shell. This was an added bonus. With his weapons it would be easier to find his brothers.

He moved again and slowly slid his hands back and start lifting himself up. His arms move slowly as his muscles were sluggish to respond. It felt like he'd been training for too hard to long. As he lifted himself up his muscles trembled twice as much and he found himself bracing his upper body up on his elbows. He panted as he remained there. Whatever the drugs were that he had been given they were taking a lot out of him. Still he had to find his brothers and no drug was going to prevent him from finding them.

His eyes blinked open slowly and he stared down at the white rug beneath him. The stark whiteness was enough to make his eyes cross. Whoever owned this rug they sure liked a clean carpet. Leo blinked his eyes several times to get past the glaring whiteness before slowly shaking his head to clean it of the remaining cobwebs. He wondered how long he'd been asleep but stopped all his thoughts as an accented voice echoed throughout the room, "Ahh, I see you have awoken, Ghost. Good. Very good. I was worried that you would not be awake by nightfall. By then all the fun would've already begun."

Trembling muscles froze as Leo tensed and looked up slowly ready for anything. He realized he was in a massive study with its walls line with bookshelves holding old leather bound books and a wide variety of trophies and trinkets. Off to one side were several large overstuffed leather recliners facing out towards the balcony. A large old-fashioned freestanding globe rested nearby and a low rectangle coffee table sat in front of the chairs. A set of glass doors were closed, barring the outside world from the room, a set of green silk curtains framed the stone balcony and the forest beyond. About twelve feet in front of him was a large mahogany desk that was neatly organized with two piles of paper and computer setting off on one corner. In the opposite corner there was a bonsai tree and a small desktop sand garden. A perpetual motion machine set between them and was clicking back-and-forth contently.

It was the man behind the desk that had spoken and was now waiting as Leo investigated his surroundings. The snide smile on his face seemed to grow in magnitude when they made eye contact. He was dressed in a business suit that looks suspiciously like it had been made with several blends of silk. The man's general appearance seemed to scream wealth but his eyes shone with an eerie gloss that suggested that none of that money had been gotten fairly. "I notice that you cannot help but to look upon my splendor, Ghost. To you this must seem like heaven but this home is nothing compared to the one I have in Italy."

Leo would hardly call this place heaven. While it was a rather impressive room to him it was all just a show. Anywhere his family was that was where he considered heaven to be. Speaking of his family, a quick glance around the room proved to him that his brothers weren't there. He glared at the man behind the desk as he finally pushed himself up onto his knees. "Where are they?" he growled through gritted teeth. "If you've hurt them-"

"Please, Ghost. Save me your idealistic threats," the man said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I can understand your ire but there is really no sense in threatening me when I have them safely tucked away for now." Leo didn't miss the stress on the word 'now'. "As it is I highly doubt that you could threaten me with something that most likely I have been already threatened with in the past." He paused and Leo found himself tensing in silence. The unspoken threat to his family hung in the air.

Leo waited a full minute before finally conceding. He wouldn't risk his family's safety for anything and no matter how he tried to rationalize it he wouldn't be able to leave the room without something befalling them. "What do you want?" He said still glowering at the man. Just because Leo had to do what he wanted didn't mean he had to show him any form of pleasantries.

The man gave Leo an oily smile again. If the man hadn't been holding his family prisoner, Leo would have torn the pompous idiot's throat out long before now. "I shall tell you in due time. Until then please," he gestured to the sitting area. "There is food and drink. Sit back, enjoy and relax. Before you fear that there is a poison or another drug in what I am offering, please note how it is still all sealed. It would be unsporting of me to have you incapacitated before the game actually began." The man then turned to the computer and became engrossed by whatever was on the screen.

He watched the man for a moment. He hated at how at ease the man seemed to be around him. It worried Leo at how much this man seemed to know about him. While Leo was still trying to think of who this man could be, the man seemed to know enough about Leo to use his brothers safety against. How did he know to do that? And why was the man insisting on calling him Ghost? Leo slowly forced himself to stand. He felt a little unsteady on his feet and the room seemed to dip slightly towards one corner before leveling out. His stomach was another matter, growling and demanding any form of food he came across. He stumbled as he walked to the sitting area.

As he passed the overstuffed chairs, Leo noticed a silver tray resting on the coffee table. The tray was holding several packets of crackers and protein bars of various brands. Four bottles also adorned the tray, two of which were ginger ale and the other two were fruit juices. His stomach rumbled again, reminding him of how hungry it was, but Leo walked past the table without a second glance. He doubted his brothers were being treated as he was and he refused to be treated any differently than them.

Leo stopped in front of the glass doors and looked out over the view beyond. Part of him wanted to throw the doors open and make a break for it but he wouldn't leave his family with this man and they would surely pay for his escape. His eyes went to the reflection of the man working at the desk. Something was nagging him in the back of his mind about this man. Leo was sure he'd seen him somewhere but he couldn't remember where. Most likely he had seen the man on the news or some other television program. The fact that the man was calling him 'Ghost' was also dimly familiar. As he thought about this, his eyes played across the foliage beyond the balcony. He had seen this forest before, or at least one hauntingly similar. He was back in South America again.

Leo stared blankly at the scene beyond the glass letting this new found knowledge sink in. South America. He and his brothers had been kidnapped and taken to a different _country_. Not just a different city or state but a whole other _country_. At least it helped to explain why they had been taken on a ship. While an airplane would have been faster, a ship could be outfitted more easily with barred cages and chains then an airplane ever could be. His stomach took that moment to growl at him, voicing its need for food. Leo doubted that anyone had been brave enough to attempt to feed any of them even in their drugged state during their trip overseas. No wonder the drug was making him sick to his stomach. There was nothing in there to help dampen the drug's effects.

Leo's eyes slowly tracked to the reflection of the man in the window again. Now he knew where he had seen this man before. His name was Vincent Thorne and he was one of largest landowners in South America. He was also in charge of one of the largest drug smuggling rings in the world. Leo could remember running into his operations a number of times and each time he had thrown more than just a monkey wrench into it. At least Leo had a motivation for their kidnapping; Vincent was in search of revenge.

There was a knock on the door causing Leo to slowly turn towards it, ready for anything. Vincent bayed whoever it was on the other side to enter the room without hesitation as if he was expecting someone. Leo watched as four burly men walked through the door. Judging by the mud and leaves stuck to their clothing and boots, they had recently been out in the jungle. Each one had some form of automated rifle slung over their shoulders and their pockets were bulging, suggesting that they had something tucked away in them. Leo doubted if there were anything nice hidden in the cloth. One of the men was wearing a well-worn, wide brimmed cowboy hat that was stained with sweat. He seemed to project an air of confidence around himself as he strolled closer towards a desk than the others. Leo marked him as the leader of the small band even before he started to speak to Vincent.

"We dumped the creatures like you said, now give us our– There's another!" the group of men visibly jumped as their leader pointed out Leonardo standing near the glass doors as still and silent as shadow. Part of Leo wanted to smirk at their flightiness but what the leader had said on his attention. If there was 'another', then these four must have known what happened to his brothers. And what exactly did they mean by dumping? Leo felt his eyes narrow as he quickly memorized their faces. If he had the opportunity he was definitely going to 'talk' to these men later.

"Gentlemen, please, let us not resort to violence so soon," Vincent said as he stood up from behind the desk and held his hands out in a calming gesture. "We are all friends in this room." Leo highly doubted he considered anyone in this room his friend. "Señor, please tell the Ghost exactly what I hired you to do to avoid any violence on his part."

Leo watched the men cautiously as they stared in awe at him. All four of them seem to be torn between the decision to listen to Vincent's commands or to shoot at him. Their hands were still eerily close to their guns and Leonardo knew that if he made any sudden movements there would be gunfire. He stayed as still as possible to keep the men thinking that they were in control of the situation. Right now a surprise attack was his only option of escaping the room but with the wildcard that Vincent held over his head regarding his brother's safety, Leo didn't dare try anything. Not until he knew they were safe.

Seeing as how Leo wasn't doing anything other than staring at him, Cowboy Hat took that as a good sign. He cleared his throat, obviously still nervous of the creature corner, but wanting to put on a good front for his boss. They had done exactly as Vincent had requested of them and he wanted to make sure that Vincent will come to them again if you need help. "Si Senor." He turned back toward Leonardo and spoken in a much more formal voice then his appearance let on to, "Senor Ghost. Senor Thorne hired us to take three creatures that look like you and leave them somewhere in the basin. We weren't allowed to tell anyone where we left them and Senor Thorne made it very clear that we weren't allowed to injure them. We gave them nothing extra than what they were wearing when they were turned over to us." Cowboy Hat then turned towards Vincent seeking approval. Hopefully, this was the final hoop that he and his men had to jump through to get their money.

Leo nearly jumped out of his shell when the thunderous sound of a semi-automatic gunfire going off filled the room. He quickly ducked into a crouch but paused when he noticed that none of the four henchmen had their weapons drawn. They were jerking in an eerie dance to the rhythmic beat of the bullets leaving the rifle's barrel and impacting with their bodies. Leo watched as one by one the men fell to the floor in slow motion, each with an expression of horror and disbelief on their faces.

Leo couldn't help but feel sorry for the group of men lying on the floor, slowly saturating the pristine carpet with their blood. Despite the fact that they had manhandled his brothers and apparently left them lying about in the rain forest, the men had done nothing to avoid such a death. Leo glared at Vincent Thorne with a suddenly deepened felling of anger towards him. To kill his own men as such without even a hint of remorse was un-honorable and deserved the same kind of death in return.

Vincent sighed as he set the gun down on the desk and walked towards Leo. Leo stood up slowly but he didn't say anything as the man open the free standing globe to reveal several hard alcohols and tumblers inside. Vincent calmly went through the motions of mixes together a hearty concoction of several types of liquor. Vincent continued to ignore Leo as he strode past him, drink in hand, and threw open the doors to the balcony. "Come, Ghost. Let us enjoy the scenic view."

Leo stood inside as Vincent walked out into the humid air. He didn't trust the man but he knew that whatever Vincent had plan was soon going to be explained, including how to save his family. Leo would do anything and everything to ensure his families' safety. Squaring his shoulders and masked his expression into that of sullen indifference, Leo walked through the archway and out onto the terrace. He may have to do something unspeakable to save his family but he refused to let Vincent know that he was suffering through it.

For a moment the two enemies stood in silence as they stared out over the forest as the sun started to descend towards the horizon. "They're out there." Vincent whispered after a while before taking a sip from the glass he held. "The forest is an unforgiving mistress, Ghost. How long do you think that they will survive on their own?" Leo's eyes narrowed as he thought about everything he had encountered in the forest depths on his stay in the jungle. If he wasn't worried about them before now he was terrified for them. The sooner he found a way to get his family out of the forest the better.

"They have the same chances as any of my men do." Vincent said answering his own question. "I gave orders to let them have everything that they had when you four were captured on that rooftop except your communication equipment. You are quiet resourceful, Ghost. Are your friends just as good as you?" He took a sip from his glass before continuing. "You intercepted and destroyed three of my convoy's through the forest when you were here, Ghost. Now you have three of your own to worry for. I never found what you did to my merchandise yet I know that you hid it somewhere in the forest." In truth, Leo had burned the shipments in small batches all throughout the forest to make sure it was never used again.

"I have presented you with the exact same challenge that you gave me back then, Ghost. Find them, wherever they may be, and then you can return back to New York with them." Leo turned towards the man. He knew that there had to be something more to this revenge then that. "However, you put my operation almost two hundred fifty eight days behind schedule with your hijinks. I have to make this fair you see. I am a man of sport. At dusk, two hundred fifty eight of the best big game hunters in the world will be sent out into the forest for you and your kinsmen. Now this has become a fair revenge. Save them, if you can Ghost." The man raised his glass up in a toast before he took another sip from it.

Vincent Thorne turned away from the railing and headed back towards the study. He had said his piece but it didn't even look to him as if he had fazed the Ghost of the Jungle in the least. Truthfully, if he had looked a little more closely at Leonardo, Vincent would have noticed that his hands were no longer relaxed at his side but clenched tightly into white-knuckled fists. His jaw was also set in a harder line as the teeth were ground together. Outwardly, Leo still seemed relatively calm but on the inside his mind was in turmoil.

Vincent paused when he reached the doorway. He had expected to have heard the Ghost say something or at least threaten his life. He turned back to the silent guardian of the forest only to see nothing but the furnishing on the veranda and himself. The Ghost was gone. With a smile the man shook his head. He had wondered if the Ghost would have gone to save them first. It made sense with the reports he had heard about him. The Ghost would help those in need before anything else.

He walked calmly back to his desk where he down the rest of his drink before sitting down in the plush leather chair behind it. Now came the wait for the Ghost and his kin to appear dead in the front lobby. Between the hunters and the forest, Vincent didn't believe that they would survive the week. He pressed several buttons on the keyboard bring up the intercom system the linked up through the entire compound. His secretary's voice floated through the speakers, "Yes, Mister Thorne?"

"Lisa," he said as he eyed the mess before the door. "Please send a cleaning crew up to my office. I seem to have made a mess on the rug again."

"Very well, Mister Thorne."


	3. Chapter 3: Into the Forest

Disclaimer: I own them… Yes, I'm being sarcastic… Can't you take a joke?

Author Notes: Well, it's been awhile but I think I remember where I was going with this story. Maybe… probably not… anyway, I'm boldly going forward with no idea of where I was planning on ending up in the first place so please give me a little slack. Now it's time for one of those awkward transitional chapters that helps to set the stage for the rest of the story.

Some minor edits were done to the previous two chapters but nothing earth shattering. Some references have been added at the end of the chapter just in case people were confused/curious.

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A Most Deadly Game

Chapter 3: Into the Forest

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He sighed and shifted in his sleep, moving around and getting comfortable again. His blankets were very warm and the mattress seemed extra soft. Except for that one spring sticking up into his side but that could be ignored like it always was. He didn't have anything to do or to think about at the moment and that was alright by him. It was so nice to have a sleep in for once that he wasn't even going to question why Klunk wasn't curled up next to him, or why he was being allowed to sleep through morning training, or why someone had opened the curtains in his bedroom and the sunlight was currently burning through his eyelids and ruining his sleepiness.

That was what tipped Michelangelo off to the fact that there was something wrong with his situation. If there was no Klunk and if there was sunlight then he was out at Casey's grandmother's place but he didn't remember driving out there. Then he remembered Casey saying something about that place undergoing major renovations so how could he be there when there were contractor's crawling all over the place? More importantly, Sensei had never let anyone sleep through morning practice unless they were injured or sick and he wasn't either of those. Last he checked anyways.

With the urgency that he knew he was in trouble, Mikey tried to wake up. The keyword was tried. Something was keeping him asleep, most likely a drug that Donnie would be able to list off the top of his head without even thinking. His limbs felt stiff and heavy and every time he tried to move he couldn't seem to make his body due more than shift about. He was defenseless, outside, and, as far as he could tell, alone. The good thing was that it meant his captors weren't anywhere nearby. The bad news was that his brother's weren't there either.

He whimpered as he tried to force his eyes open. It took everything he had to open his eyes and even then all he could see was bright sunlight and blurry green patches all around him. He let his eyes close as they had begun to burn from the intensity of the light. He was in a lot of trouble and his brothers were in just as much or even more so. He remembered the unprovoked attack on the rooftops and collapsing after he had been hit with some kind of dart. Now he was outside and alone.

He had to find his brothers but first he had to wake up and get up. In a surge of determination, Michelangelo snapped open his eyes and, ignoring the blurriness around him, rolled off his side and up onto his feet. He only managed to make it halfway up right before the dizziness caught up to him and, in an interesting zigzag maneuver, stumbled left then right before tilting over completely and ending up face first on the ground again, plowing up a small furrow of dirt with his forehead. At least the coolness of the dirt was helping to ease his aching head and with a small sigh he huffed to himself.

"Dude… this just isn't going to be a good day…dirt shouldn't be this comfortable…"

-Break-

He was going to kill them. End of story. He was going to find them and rip them apart with his bare hands regardless of what Sensei said about fighting honorably. He was going to sneak in and throttle them in their sleep. If they could fight back, he would make their beatings even more painfully, taking them apart piece by piece until they finally succumbed to their injuries. Yes, they were going to pay. Pay in blood. Pay with their lives as long as he had anything to say about it. No one -and that meant everyone in the galaxy, other dimensions or other countries- would get away with kidnapping and hurting his brothers.

A branch off some kind of tropical bushy plant felt his wrath as he slashed out at it with the tip of his sai. The branch was snapped off and fell to the ground with a small but rather satisfying plop. He really wished it was someone's head. Particularly one of the guys who attacked and drugged him and his brothers before carting them off to who knew where for whatever psychotic purpose they had managed to come up with. Yes, he was going to kill them but first he had to wait for the rest of this drug to work its way out of his system.

Leaning heavily back against a tree, seething as he waited as patiently as possible, Raphael had the look of the deranged as he gritted his teeth and growled lowly to himself. As soon as he could move he was going to find his brothers and make sure that they were alright. Then he was going to find who had kidnapped them and make them wish that they had thought of anything but kidnapping four humanoid turtles, especially when one had the taste for violent revenge. He gripped the handles of his sias a little tighter. Yes, there was going to be some serious shell to pay.

Moving slowly and ready to fall back against the tree in case he was still to dizzy to walk, Raph shifted more of his weight onto his feet. A grin of triumph spread across his face as he stood on his own. He was still a little wobbly when he took his first step forward but that should soon wear off. Now that he was standing and almost ready to bust some heads, it was time to find their path and that would also help him to get his feet back under him.

Raphael was not the best tracker in the world but he knew enough to get by. Three men had brought him here and left him on his side. They had covered their tracks well, physically hiding them with branches and possibly even dragging something behind them to masks their tracks in the soft soil. The trick would have worked had they thought to cover their tracks more than fifteen feet from where they left him. He crouched low as he examined the heavy tread on the boot. It almost appeared military but looked nothing like the particular tread that were on Agent Bishop's lackeys. They looked more like the tread on an army boot. Staying where he was, Raphael lifted his head as his eyes followed the tracks off into the bushes.

He smiled as he started to follow the tracks, twirling his sais in anticipation. Grounding out a quiet, "You punks are so going to get it when I catch up to you," as he slipped off through the trees.

-Break-

Despite the fear for his family and the desire to know why he was kidnapped and brought to this forest, Donatello couldn't help but stare around at the foliage, sunshine, various flowers and vines. Bird calls that he had only ever read about or heard from online sources and documentaries echoed loudly through the tree canopy above him. This was an experience that he had only ever dreamed about.

However, it came with its own amount of dangers as well. Dangers he doubted that his brother even knew about. Regardless of why they were kidnapped and brought here -which he doubted was for a good reason- the rainforest that he at least was in had its own amount of dangers and pitfalls that he had to keep an eye out for. At least he could only hope that his brothers were somewhere nearby.

Donatello frowned at that, his brothers could be anywhere, there was no grantee that they had been left to their own devices in this rainforest like he was. As far as he could tell he had been given some kind of modified xylazine or perhaps sucostrin on the roof top back in New York and during their trip to wherever here was. If their abductors had continued to administer them then they could keep his brothers unconscious for several days, up to a week if they hooked them up to an IV providing both fluids and nutrients. Donatello looked over his arms and at the back of his hands but didn't see any kind of puncture marks. They hadn't hooked him up to an IV as far as he could tell.

That meant that the headache he had was only partially due to the remnants of the drug in his system. He was dehydrated. His stomach took that moment to rumble at him. Water was more important that food at the moment so, cautiously, Donatello started into the trees, alert for any kind of surprises from either the forest itself or from whomever had brought him there.

He could only hope that his brothers were somewhere in the rainforest too and that they kept their heads about them as they moved through the forest. Until he found them and warned them, they were on their own and if they weren't in the rainforest… Donatello sighed. He would have to cross that bridge when he came to it. There wasn't much he could to until then except keep himself alive as he searched for them.

Movement on a large leaf to his left caught his attention and Donatello froze when he saw the small brightly colored frog staring at him. The bright blue and black spotted frog was barely an inch long but Donatello felt like he was staring down the maw of an angry lion. Slowly, he brought his hands up and stepped away from the deceptively harmless frog. "It's okay little guy," he murmured more to himself than the frog. "I'm not going to hurt you."

The frog just continued to watch him, unmoving.

When he was sure that he was out of the frog's range, Donatello finally turned away from him. He let out a breath that he hadn't realized that he had been holding in. That had been close. Though he didn't know much about the various breeds of poison dart frogs, he knew enough to not touch them, despite their beauty. Some breeds could kill ten to twenty men and he was pretty sure he wasn't immune to their toxin.

-Break-

He had forgotten how much of a challenge it had been to move through the jungle.

Where the city had harsh angles with conveniently placed architecture that rarely crumbled in his hands or under his feet, the jungle was alive. There was nothing convenient about the placement of certain branches and the moss that seemed to grow on everything made placement of his feet critical when he landed. A wet metal roof in the middle of a downpour was easier to land on than a branch covered in moss even if there was no rain. The thin layer of plant life was a twisted ankle just waiting to happen.

Things also broke very easily. His hands would tear up bark as his grabbed at branches. The rot was sometimes severe enough that the wood would crumple beneath his fingers and he would be in free fall for a few moments before he could catch onto another branch. Vines were never very trust worthy, breaking from his weight alone as he tried to swing from them, and were avoided at all costs. He would take his time jumping from tree limb to tree limb rather than grabbing a vine and plunging to the ground as if he hadn't grabbed anything.

He had also forgotten how much of a thrill it was.

It was like katas, the grace and finesse was the control for the strength and speed as you moved through the poses. The city was where strength and speed came into play more than the finesse. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop was dangerous, but with enough speed on your side and timing your jumps just right, you would never fall. In the jungle, it was constantly twisting and turning, flipping through the tree limbs. Your mind was always three steps ahead of where your body was and an alternate route was always sought after as well. It was a test of finesse and endurance in ways the city never could.

Leonardo had forgotten how much he loved moving through the trees.

He grabbed the branch with both hands, kicking his feet underneath it and up quickly to gain the momentum he needed. He let go of the branch as his hands slid on the rough bark and he neatly tucked into a roll as he fell six feet and landed on a branch, careful of the moss layering it. He didn't stop, leaning forward and pushing off from the branch, angling himself so that he could land on the tree trunk, briefly ignoring gravity as he was horizontal to the ground, before pushing off again. Twisting himself upward using another branch as a pivot point, he ran along the branch he landed on and right up the tree's trunk, grabbing at limbs and pulling himself upward.

He pulled himself upward, hopping from limb to limb as he continued to scale the tree he was on. Leaves were brushed off to the side as he went, barely giving them more than a passing thought as he continued his ascent determined to get to the top. Leonardo slowed as the branches and leaves became thinner and he could feel the ancient tree he was climbing sway slightly with his added weight.

Finding a relatively sturdy looking branch for being this close to the top of the tree, Leonardo perched on it with one hand against the tree's trunk to help him keep his balance as he looked around at the view. Trees were in even direction, at times so thick that it was impossible to tell where the trees' trunks were. Off in the distance, the sun was beginning to set, sending out a combination of yellows and reds to bathe the horizon.

Leonardo sighed as he looked out over the forest. There was nothing that he could see to lead him to his brothers. Though he doubted that any of them would do anything to draw attention to themselves in such a situation. They were probably lying low, searching for each other. This was going to be like trying to find three moving needles in a hay barn.

His eyes were drawn back to the horizon and he glared at it. Thorne would soon be sending out his collection of hunters and with their numbers they could practically sweep the whole basin in one go. How long could his brothers remain hidden before they were found? And what about them in the jungle? Donnie was probably the only one who would even have a clue about all the hidden dangers lurking in the forest but Mikey and Raph would either not know or be too head strong to actually think about it.

He stood up, wobbling slightly as he looked around the tree he was in again. He had no idea what he had hoped to accomplish climbing up here. Maybe he just needed to see the vast expanse of land he had to cover to find them. It was daunting but the thought of them, out there alone, being hunted like animals caused the rage that he had first left his family to cleanse came back with a vengeance.

No one hurt or threatened his family.

He leapt off of the tree, shoving his rage to the back of his mind as he focused all his energy into the rapid descant down the tree flipping, tucking and rolling from branch to branch in a choreographed looking fall. When his controlled fall led him deep enough into the canopy to have more options for ways to move forward he did so. As he moved through the canopy, he made a mental list of what he needed to accomplish. First and foremost, he had to find and protect his family.

Then he would deal with Thorne.

-Break-

Vincent stepped out onto the veranda, idly holding his glass in one hand as he walked up to the waist high railing that went around the deck. He stared up into the soft red and yellow hues of the sunset. It was almost time for the Hunt to begin.

"Mister Thorne."

He turned to regard his secretary, taking a long moment to appreciate the lithe form before him as he took another sip of his glass. Her suit wasn't nearly as expensive as his but it highlighted her curves nicely, showing off her assets without being vulgar. The charcoal pencil skirt and matching blazing were highlighted with the bright red camisole, lipstick and pumps that she wore. She idly took her black rimmed glasses off, tossing her head slightly to exaggerate their removal as he watched. With her blonde hair up in a perfect bun, the affect was diminished but not completely destroyed.

"Yes Lisa?" he said already having a fairly good idea of what she was going to say.

"It is nearly time for the hunters to prepare to leave. Is there anything you would like to say to them before they head out?"

He shook his head, glancing back at the rapidly diminished sun as it fell further below the horizon. There was nothing more that he needed to say to them. They knew their mission. Hunt down the Ghost and his kin and bring their bodies to him either alive or dead. They would either complete their contract with him or, if they failed, his own militia would deal with them. Failure was not tolerated in his home.

She dipped her head in acknowledgement before putting her glasses back on as she turned to reenter his office. His eyes flickered over her again before noticing something amiss. "Lisa," he said in a quiet voice. His obedient secretary turned to him again and awaited instruction. He took a moment to remind himself that her obedience was the reason why he had hired her in the first place and this was a minor altercation that just needed to be corrected. It was not enough to have her permanently dismissed over. It would take too long to find someone as methodically and willing as her.

"I bought you a pair of Christian Louboutin's to wear while you are in my employment," he nodded his head at her feet causing her to look down at them. "If I ever see another brand on your feet again, I will have your contract terminated."

Her eyes widened as her head snapped up to look at him fearfully, knowing full well what a terminate contract entailed. She regained her composure quickly, pulling herself together to manage a shaky, "Yes, Mister Thorne."

He turned back towards the view, dismissing her, and idly wondered how long he would have to wait for the Ghost's broken body to be lying on the floor of the front lobby.

* * *

References:  
xylazine and sucostrin – big game tranquilizers typical used on elks and deer  
Christian Louboutin – expensive shoe line with prices ranging from $650 - $3,000+


	4. Chapter 4: Old Haunts

Disclaimer: I own them… Yes, I'm being sarcastic… Can't you take a joke?

Author Notes: This would have been up a lot earlier if my internet actually worked. I am sick and tired of winter snow storms taking out my internet! Where's summer?! I want it here now!

* * *

A Most Deadly Game

Chapter 4: Old Haunts

* * *

He forgot how creepy the forest could be at night. During the day the rain forest was teaming with life no matter which way you turned but at night the forest was eerily silent in comparison. About the only animals still moving through the undergrowth were predators. It was similar to the switch in noise levels in New York City between the day and night. Only there was a lack of car alarms and engine noises that were always present in the city that never slept.

Leonardo moved silently through the underbrush, listening closely to the near silence that surrounded him, straining to hear anything that would give away something trying to sneak up on him. He had once been stalked by a jaguar, and only knew it was there by the faint rustle of leaves he heard occasionally. Lighting a torch drove it away but there was a tense few seconds as he stood there, torch in one hand and sword in the other, as he stared into the faintly glowing green eyes less than fifteen feet from him. He had no desire to repeat that standoff.

He paused for a moment, glancing around the darkened woods before crouching down and pushing some branches of a bush out of the way, revealing a small opening underneath it. Moving cautiously Leonardo made sure he was braced half in and out of the hole before dropping through entirely. He caught at the roots dangling down into the cave to help slow his fall enough so that he dropped to the cavern floor with little force. He stood with a sigh, glancing around the cave he now stood in.

Leonardo had originally stumbled upon this cave system much the same way April had when she had come looking for him. As far as he could tell, the cave network spread out underneath a good portion of the rain forest, and offered a familiar comfort that the sewers had always provided. He pulled the small pen light from his belt and turned it on, knowing that even with his heightened ability to see in the dark, the cave was still pitch black to him.

Shadows danced about the room, cast off the stalactites and stalagmites that marred the cave's ceiling and floor. It took him only a moment to notice the rocks sitting on a relatively flat patch of the cavern floor. They were loosely placed together and slanted 'T' shape with what looked like the number two connected to it. Secretly, Leonardo was relieved that his markers were still intact. He doubted that he would be able to find his way through the cave system anymore without them. He used to have most of the cavern layout memorized by picking out prominent features of particular rooms and using those to locate himself.

Heading towards the left most tunnel from the marker, Leo moved slowly through the cavern watching the ground to make sure he didn't trip over a rocky protrusion and in front of himself so he didn't walk through a spider web. He had once had a spider larger than his hand land on his cheek after walking through a web which led to him avoiding spider webs as much as he could after that. He knew that there were numerous poison varieties and having something that big and insect-like landing on his cheek had him wiping frantically at his face. His skin had been trying to crawl off him for hours after that. Leo had become a lot more understanding of Raphael's refusal-to-admit-to-fear of bugs and hadn't teased him once about it since returning from South America. He smirked slightly as he thought of Raph's reaction to having a bug that large land on him.

That train of thought had him thinking of his brothers again and the peril that they were all in. He increased his pace, moving at a slow jog as he continued to watch for any kind of danger. The sooner he grabbed some supplies and started searching for his brothers again the better.

It had occurred to him about an hour before he had ventured underground again why Throne had kept calling him Ghost. He had made quite a name for himself in this area and had a reputation preceding him. The men that had left his brothers in the forest had helped to prove that. Their faces had paled even more when Thorne had called him Ghost. It was something he could use to his advantage but first he needed a few things that he had left behind in his old makeshift home.

It took him about another hour of moving through the caves to reach his home away from home. The small crag was located off a slightly larger cavern then the one he had originally enter the system through and had a series of bluish red mineral deposits throughout the stalactites and stalagmites the littered the area. The colors blended together to form different hues of blues, reds, which included orange and purple. There was even one stalactite that almost appeared maroon. It hadn't been much but it had helped back then to remind him of the family that he had left behind.

He moved the dark tarp aside that had been covering the entrance to the much smaller cave ready for anything that had started calling it home after he left to come out of it. After a moment of nothing moving within it, Leo stepped inside, letting the improvised door to flop back into place. The rocky room looked exactly as it had when he had left it.

It was roughly rectangular shaped, the entrance being down in the corner of it while the rest of the room spread off to the left at a slight angle away from the cavern it was connected too. To his right sitting next to the wall at about the middle of the room were two earthen ware pots that came up to his knee. He lifted the lid of each, noting that they still were both about half full of water that he had boiled ages ago. He doubted it would still be uncontaminated and made a mental note to boil it again before drinking from them.

Directly across the room from the pots, underneath a hole that lead up into the ceiling which was surrounded by an impressive smoke ring, was a small fire pit that had a pot still suspended over it on a spit. There were still some coals in ring and plenty of wood stacked directly across from the door next to it. He could have a roaring fire in a matter of moments.

He moved to the back of the room which was taken up by a mat he had woven together with various plant fibers. The make shift bed had been much more comfier than sleeping on the rocky ground and had help to remind him of the tatami flooring in Master Splinter's rooms. He ran his hand over it fondly, remembering how much of a pain it had been to make but that first night sleeping on it had been the best night's sleep he had since he had first arrived.

On the bed were several light brown blankets that had been left folded in the middle of it. He set the pen light down next to the pile, turned towards the rest of the room, before reaching for the top blanket. He carefully shook them out, expecting to see various insects and maybe a small lizard fall out only to be surprised when only a little dust fell slowly to the ground. Next to the pile of blankets was what he had come all this way for. It was a smock with a hood on, designed to bunch in the front and back so that it floated about him like a cape yet stayed out of his way. The way it moved had probably helped to give him his nickname among the native people down here.

He set the smock down and opened the satchel that it had been sitting on. Inside was still the water bottle he had taken off some of Throne's drug runners along with the flares and some of the rope coiled up inside. He slid the satchel on so that it rested against his right hip and then put the smock on over that. He shifted the fabric about enough so that the two slits he had cut in it passed over the hilts of his swords so that he could draw them without being impeded by his outfit.

He stood there for a moment feeling oddly self-conscious of himself. When he had first started wearing this outfit, he hadn't been doing more than just trying to hide his appearance so that he wouldn't panic the populace and have them call in monster hunters to hunt down a large bipedal turtle. Now it was a symbol, a symbol that the locals had assumed with protection and heroism. He wondered if this was what the heroes in Mikey's comic books went through every time they dressed up in their outfits before rushing off to save the world.

He shook his head, before flipping the hood up and on. He pulled it down a bit on the front before turning back towards the exit. Just because he was wearing an outfit didn't make this any different from any of the other times he had to defend his family. The reputation that preceded the Ghost of the Jungle was just another weapon he was able to add to his arsenal.

-Break-

It was easy to find the first group of hunters. They were thrashing around in the forest as they marched determinably on. What they were expecting to accomplish flailing this close to dawn Leonardo had no idea but they were doing an amazing job at scaring away everything within the immediate area.

Leonardo followed them, moving near silently through the trees above them as they continued to commune with nature with machetes and the occasional curse. It was almost embarrassing to watch them flounder against the plant life so much. If he knew they wouldn't shot at him on sight, Leo was almost tempted to call out to them that it was easier to lift the branches out of the way instead of trying to hack them apart.

The five man party was in a roughly wedged pattern. The three in the front were the ones with their machetes out, bravely attacking the defenseless foliage that happened to be in there way. Their two compatriots followed along behind them, both casually cradling high powered rifles in their arms as they goaded on the companions in front of them. Periodically one of the guards would turn and watch behind their group for a moment before turning back around.

They weren't completely stupid at least.

Leonardo watched them critically, trying to formulate the best way to take the five men out so that they wouldn't be getting back up but so that they could at least escape the forest before something came along and ate them. He also wanted to leave at least one of them standing long enough to prove to himself that he hadn't been wasting time going to get his old garb. He needed to know that it had been worth it. He had been arguing with himself after he had left the caves that he should have just continued looking for his brothers instead of running around below ground. He might have found one of them by now if he hadn't been spelunking.

He gave himself a mental shake and refocused on the group below him. It was obvious that his priority was taking out the two men in the back first. He should be able to incapacitate both of them before the other three could turn around. If he moved fast enough, he would be able to smash the pommels of his swords into the collar bones of two of the machete wielders and then he would just have to deal with the third in what would hopefully be a quick one on one fight.

Leo was a little bit ahead of the group and so braced himself against the tree limb he was on before drawing his swords, watching and waiting as the hunters moved below him. It wasn't until one of the guards was directly underneath him that he jumped. He landed on one of the guard's shoulders with all of his weight being pulled down by gravity. He could feel the snapping pops as the man's shoulders were dislocated and his collar bone broke in at least three different spots.

He lashed out to the side, slapping the other man's hands with the flat of his blade causing his hand to open and the gun to tumble free. He kicked him hard in the ribs, feeling several bones flex oddly with the hit. The man was launched to the side from the kick, slamming face first into the tree which he collapsed to the base of unmoving.

Leonardo barely gave him more than a passing thought as he sprung forward, landing between two of the machete wielders who were just turning to face him completely. He didn't give them time to react, flipping his swords around and slamming them down on the ridge of bone between their necks and shoulders. There was a pair of sickening crunches and pain filled screams that echoed through the predawn hours around them. Both men clutched at their injured chest and shoulders slightly as they collapsed to the ground, unconsciousness claiming them as the pain became too great.

With his blades flipped back around, Leonardo looked to the finally hunter who had turned around in time to see him drop his two path clearing buddies. The hunter had his machete half raised as if he was going to fight but the blade was trembling so badly, Leo was surprised that he hadn't dropped it yet. "G-Ga-G-" he was trying to say as he took a step back. The area around his crotch suddenly grew suspiciously darker as he finally spit out, "G-Ghost of the Jungle!"

With that, he dropped his machete and collapsed in a heap to the ground.

He blinked in surprise, lowering his swords slightly but still ready in case the man was playing unconsciousness. He nudged the hunter with his toe, prompting no reaction or movement. This close to the man he could make out the smell of urine. Leonardo sighed as he looked at the sad little lump of humanity at his feet as he slid his swords away.

At least it had been a quick fight.


	5. Chapter 5: Signs

Disclaimer: I own them… Yes, I'm being sarcastic… Can't you take a joke?

* * *

A Most Deadly Game

Chapter 5: Signs

* * *

Leonardo raced through the trees, pushing himself passed his physical limits as he struggled to get to where he was going even faster. Every muscle in his body ached and he panted heavily, almost wheezing, as he struggled to get every ounce of speed possible. In truth, he usually never dared to go this fast. The faster he went the easier it was for him to lose his grip or miss his landing bad enough to cause him to fall. It was a terrifying thought to falling from this height but not nearly as terrifying as the automatic gunfire that had shattered the silence of the rain forest barely an hour ago.

He gritted his teeth, angry at how slow he seemed to be moving. One of his brothers could be in trouble and he was too far away to do anything about it. His own failing angered him so much that he wanted to purposely smack his head against a tree trunk. He would have done it too if the self-harm wouldn't have gotten in the way of him moving faster.

He nearly ran pass the site had it not been for a pained groan that came from below him. Leonardo stopped to fast that he lost his balance, nearly falling from the branch he was on. He let himself fall forward but caught the branch instead and flipped himself over it so he was now crouched on the limb facing the way he had come. He took a breath to help steady himself before looking at the forest floor, expecting the worst, only to let out a small sigh of relief.

Several hunters were laying scattered about on the ground beneath him in varying stages of unconsciousness. The fact that they were still alive meant that one of his brothers had run into them and not one of the creatures that naturally inhabited the woods. He also doubted that anything other than one of his brothers would still be alive after that hail of gunfire he had heard.

Moving cautiously in case he wasn't the only one coming to investigate the noise, Leonardo descended from his perch down to the forest floor. Hopefully, there was a clue as to which one of his brothers had been here and where they had gone. The forest around him was silent, only the occasionally almost timid bird call would sound off as the rain forests inhabitants started to stir once again.

Leo didn't have to do more than a cursory glance around at the men to know who they had gotten into a fight with. While all his brothers could be violent and brutal when they had to be, Raphael took the proverbial cake. There was something about his fighting style that was easy to pick up on even when Mikey and Donnie were angered enough to be especially nasty.

Raphael had been more violent than normal. Several of the hunters had broken ribs and one had a compound fracture on his left arm that was still bleeding sluggishly. All of them were supporting a wide variety of bruises and every one of their guns had been rendered useless with precision stabs to the firing cylinders and trigger mechanisms.

Leo walked past the hunters, barely giving them more than a passing glance to asset their injuries before focusing more on the ground. Dirt and leaves were scattered about showing where bodies had slid and feet had struggled to find purchase. It was a confusing scene to decipher but Leo finally concluded that Raph had ambushed the hunters and not the other way around.

After Raph had dealt with them he had headed northeast. He was staying on the ground which made it easier to track him. However, Leo probably wasn't the only one following the trail. He heaved a frustrated sigh. Knowing the hothead, Raph was probably staying on the ground intentionally, looking for a fight.

Bonehead.

He hadn't gone far when a dark spot on a large leaf several feet several yards away from Raph's path caught his attention. There was something about it that was disturbingly familiar. Leo moved off the trail and approached what was unmistakably dried blood on the leaf. While it was mostly dried, there was still a slight stickiness to it still signaling that it was fresh if a bit old. Leo glanced around the ground but didn't notice any tracks or signs that anyone or anything had gone by. Seeing nothing, he reexamined the leaf. It almost looked like the blood had dripped down onto it.

Immediately, Leonardo looked up and began scanning the canopy above him looking for any signs of blood on the branches and leaves. It was on his second pass through the area that he noticed a shadow that seemed a little off. He took in a sharp intake of breath, frozen for just a second before he was running for the nearest tree trunk, scaling it in record time.

As he climbed it was obvious that the shadow had led him to a greater discovery than he could have thought. Someone had built a nest out of vines and leaves where the branch forked. He hadn't even realized that the branch had been forked to begin with while he was on the ground. Now, that he was above it he could see that someone had taken time to make a rather comfortable hammock in the trees.

And whoever they were they had bled a lot.

The amount of blood that had been hidden from the forest floor was as astonishing as it was scary. Even before he found the shuriken that was being used as an anchor point for the vines, Leo knew that this nest was built by one of his brothers. None of the hunters would be able to climb up here with all their gear on and they would have undoubtedly used ropes as opposed to the vines. The hunters also didn't have any reason to hide this well. One of his brothers was hurt.

There was a chance that Raphael had been the one hurt but Leo doubted it. There was no signs of blood on his trail and, judging by the amount of 'ass kicking' as Casey put it on the hunters he had found, Raphael was fighting a his usual strength without any kind of impediment. Leo glanced around the area and now that he knew what he was looking for he could faintly make out small droplets of blood on the branches nearby.

Either Mikey or Donnie was hurt and was heading west.

It took much longer than he had thought to decide what to do. Raphael was a lot closer but in perfect health. Whoever was hurt was further away but in bad shape if he was to take a guess. It didn't help that his imagination ran away with how badly they were possibly hurt. He wavered back and forth, knowing that every second he wasted could count more than he thought.

Finally Leo heaved a sigh and stood up on the branch, facing northeast. "Be careful, Raph," he whispered, hoping his brother would somehow take his advice even though he couldn't hear him. He quickly followed the trial that led west, expecting the worst as he rushed to catch up with his injured brother.

Whoever was hurt probably wasn't moving as fast as Raphael was and if they were injured that was a high chance that they wouldn't be able to protect themselves well. They needed to rest more too. It would have been nice to even know where one of his brothers was but he doubted that Raph would have been very good company after he found out that Leo had gone after him and not an injured sibling.

As it was, Leonardo was upset with himself for taking so long to decide what to do.

-Break-

About two miles northeast of Leonardo's position, another mutant terrapin slid to a halt. Raphael paused in his mad dash through the forest and tilted his head to one side listening. He could have sworn that he had heard something but after a minute of hearing nothing but the sounds of the forest around him he concluded that he was just hearing things.

Growling to himself, he continued to stalk forward in his search. He was either looking for signs of his brothers or for more goons to fight. He'd either take out any of the guy stalking him and his brothers or he find his brothers. Either option worked for him but he was more in the butt kicking mood at that moment so he hoped for more of these hunters to cross his path. It helped to ease his rising fear that something bad was going to happen to his brothers.

-Break-

Donatello had been the one hurt.

And now it looked like he was hurt even worst.

Leo gritted his teeth as a very Raphael like growl escaped him. A piece of Donatello's bandanna was clutched in his hand. It appeared to have been cut of one of the trailing ends by a knife of some kind. A very sharp knife.

These hunters seemed to have their acts together a lot more than the group he and Raph had run into. They obviously had silencers on their guns because there were numerous bullet holes in the surrounding landscape but he hadn't heard anything out of the ordinary. It figured that one of his younger brothers had run into the worst groups so far. Wasn't this that "turtles' luck" that Raph was always going on about.

He had a hard time trying to figure what had happened. It was obvious that the hunters had somehow managed to knock Don out of the trees. There was some kind of bush off to the side that had been completely flattened by something big and heavy. It was splayed outward more on one side and Leo assumed that meant that Don had rolled off to the side before getting back to his feet. Leo was worried that Don had hurt himself even worst in the fall. Even though there was no blood there was a good chance that Don had broken something from falling from that height.

Leo heaved a sigh, more impatient with himself than anything. Donatello was hurt and needed help and he was just hanging around trying to guess who badly he had been hurt. If he just hurried up he would know because he would be tending to his younger brother's injuries.

He looked over the confusing marks on the ground. It was obvious that these hunters were a little better at hand to hand then the others, or Don was just that hurt he was having trouble fight them effectively. Hopefully that wasn't the case but, from what he could tell by the tracks, it was. Leo squeezed the piece of bandanna hard, hoping that Donatello would be able to stay alive till he got there.

A soft breeze moved around him, bringing the unmistakable smell of rain with it. "Great, as if I didn't have enough to worry about," Leo grumbled to himself as he looked in the direction that wind had come from. It didn't surprise him that there was going to be rain, he was in a rain forest after all, but the rain would wash away any tracks. He hoped that Raph was alright as he quickly looked over the ground one more. Where had Donnie gone?

He nearly laughed out loud when he realized what had happened. Donatello was always the smartest one out of the four of them. He had doubled back on himself trying to throw the hunters off and nearly throwing Leo off his trail too. His brother was using several sets of footprints that the hunters had left when they had first been moving towards him, stepping into each one to hide his tracks. He had leapt from their path probably ten feet from where they had fought. Leo guessed that if he took the time to search the clearing more thoroughly that he would find a spent smoke capsule.

Not that he was going to or could afford to. The distant rumble of thunder reached his ears as he began following Donatello's new path that led southwest. He was now going in the exact opposite direction that Raphael had been going. He scolded himself, one brother at a time. Get to Donnie and get him out of harm's way. His temporary home down in the caves would be the perfect place for him to rest and recover. Then Leo could look for Raph and Mikey. He knew that for now, Raph was going to be fine and, wherever he was, Leo hoped that Michelangelo was alright too.

-Break-

Far to the south, an agonizing groan filled the air.

"I'm going to die. Oh God does it hurt," Michelangelo whimpered as he stumbled through the brush. "I haven't seen any signs of civilization in days. I want a sho- a bathroom! I want a whole bathroom! And a kitchen!" He whimpered, "I'll never see my brothers again, or Sensi, or Klunk or… Oh no! I'm not even going to get one last slice of pizza before I go! That's not fair, what about my dying wish!" He shook his fist angrily at the sky as if it was somehow responsible for his predicament.

The groan filled the air again.

Mikey sighed and patted his stomach. "Don't worry, buddy," Mikey soothed. "Once I find my bros, I'll shove you so full of pizza it'll hurt. Just hang in there. Stay with me. Don't leave me alone!"

He stomach just let out another rumbling groan as its dubious response.

-Break-

She did feel bad about having to do what she did but it really was for the better. The girl was an innocent and she deserved more than a life of servitude for a drug lord. She was safe as she could be now. Currently on a plane with a man she trusted and hired to smuggle her out of the country to America where she could hopefully start her life anew. Of course, after being taken from here, anything probably looked better.

She adjusted the blonde wig a little so that it looked more like her natural hair before she began to blend the makeup over the seam to hide it better. She did feel sorry for having to drug Lisa but it was better than the other option. She really was starting to get soft in her old age.

The compound was waking up slowly as she finished her disguise and headed for her destination. She knew that soon it would be in nothing but chaos. The young woman pretending to be Lisa smirked slightly, as she entered the small but rather glamorous office where she now worked, ready to act out her part for the next couple hours before she carried out her plan. She wasn't very good at doing paper work –in fact she despised it- but she could easily fake it for a couple of hours at least to keep up appearances.

She breezed over the work, idly trying to figure out where the real Lisa had left off, helping to pass the time only to pause when a payroll report caught her eye. Throne had hired a lot of big game hunters and trackers lately which was weird. He had a small army at his disposable and yet he had hired even more guns? And on a one time bases as well?

Curious as to what she had stumbled on and still trying to kill time which had seemed to slow to a crawl, Lisa began going through the records both in the filing cabinets and on the computer. The computer had annoyed her with the eighteen million passwords it kept asking for but a quick hack had cracked the weak encryptions and laid the desired files bare for her to scrounge through.

What she found pissed her off to no end.

She had never seen herself as a very protective person before or even a nice person at that, but the thought of threatening someone's family like this made her blood boil. For a moment she was tempted to complete the job then and there but forced herself to calm down at the last moment. Rash actions would just get her into trouble, probably more than she could get out of on her own, and she would have no help. The turtles might help her but, after everything that had happened, she doubted it. This change of plans was going to have to be handled very carefully.

Resigning herself to doing paperwork for the next day or so, Lisa got to work modifying her plans for this unexpected development.


	6. Chapter 6: Storm

Disclaimer: I own them… Yes, I'm being sarcastic… Can't you take a joke?

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A Most Deadly Game

Chapter 6: Storm

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The storm hit just as hard and fast as Leonardo remembered them too.

The first warning was the strange heaviness to the air as the sky darkened with clouds. It was a herald to the oncoming deluge and –even though he knew it was coming- the sudden down pouring of water caused him to pause. There seemed to be no in between, at first it had been the normal humid jungle air, the next it was water falling from the heavens and rolling off leaves and branches above him.

He hated being wet.

Still, being soaked through to the bone meant very little at the moment. The only thing that mattered was finding Donatello. The fear for his younger brother had only been growing the longer he tracked him through the forest. There were several signs that he had stumbled and the sight of blood on the ground where that had apparently happened was enough to make his heart clench.

What was worse was the signs that the hunters were closing in on him. Twice now Leonardo had found the impact holes of where bullets had hit trees about head height to Donatello. He had been a lucky turtle so far but he was obviously tiring judging by the miss steps and stumbles Leo could make out. Eventually, Don would make a mistake, a mistake that would probably cost him his life.

Leonardo did his best to push those thoughts from his mind as he started moving again in the direction he was sure Don was heading. It was going to be next to impossible to track him now that the rain had started. The rain was going to wash away any and all signs of his passing. It may make it harder for Leo to track him but it would also make it harder for the hunters to locate him. This storm was a blessing in disguise and –even though he would rather find him that day- Leo was more than willing to loose Donnie's trail if that meant that the hunters were going to lose it as well.

Donatello had an annoying habit of doubling back on himself and following previous paths he had taken in an effort to throw off his pursuers. It was a good strategy. Leo had lost his trail enough times already that he couldn't even count it on both hands any longer. He had only found the elusive trail again by following the wandering tracks of the hunters as they moved about looking for it. Don's backtracking was quiet possibly the only reason that the hunters hadn't overtake him already.

It was obvious with the way Don was trying to not drag his left foot that something was wrong. There were scuff marks on the ground near the back of his foot like he was hurrying to get his right foot back down on the ground. Leo was willing to bet that Don had either sprained or twisted either his left ankle or knee.

If there was something Leo didn't want to think too hard about it was the amount of blood that seemed to be liberally dribbled about where Don had stumbled. Don had either wrapped a bandage around the injury or his arms were injured somehow. It would explain why there was so little blood between where he had stumbled. The wound could be partially healed but, when he threw his arms out to catch himself, the wound would reopen. It made sense and Leo could only hope that –if that were the case- it was a relatively minor injury.

However, now that the rain had arrived, unless Don broke a branch or came out from behind a tree in front of him there was a good chance that Leo was going to lose the trail completely. He paused for a moment and glanced around at the floral surrounding him. There were no signs that Donatello or the hunters had gone this way. Leo heaved a heavy sign and crouched down, knowing it would be next to impossible to see Donatello's tracks with the water relentlessly falling from the sky and hiding the earth underneath itself. It was something, however insignificant, for him to do and not feel useless.

A threatening rumble of thunder came from overhead followed closely by the crack and brief flash of lighting. Leo ignored the warnings. With all of the tall trees around him, it was highly unlikely that he would get struck by lightning. Perhaps if he climbed a tree and held one of his katanas above his head he would run the risk of getting struck but right now it was more important to find his brother.

Another crack of lightning-

Leonardo froze, all his senses hyper aware as he listened closely. That crack had not been from the storm above him –which rumbled again as if in agreement with his thought- it had been form a rifle or some other matter of firearm. There must be a group of hunters nearby firing at some-

Another gunshot pierced through the wail of the storm.

Leonardo was off, running quickly through the storm, not even bothering for any kind of stealth as he hurried towards the sound of the gunshot. There was a good chance that the hunters were firing at Don. They were close enough to him that it should be the same group that he had also been tracking alongside Don's trail.

He was so focused on getting to where that gun had been fired that Leo all but plowed into a hunter that he didn't see thanks to the poor visibility caused by the oncoming night and the storm. The hunter had been completely taken off guard, saying something in Spanish that Leo was certain a swear or oath of some kind, but he wasn't really paying attention. He was more concerned with putting the hunter out of commission before he could even think of trying to turn the machete or hand gun the hunter was carrying in either hand on Leo.

A quick jab to the throat followed by a knee to his stomach had the hunter dropping his weapons and falling to his knees as he struggled to breath. Leonardo didn't give him a chance to rise. The sooner he incapacitated him the sooner Leo could figure out where Don was. A quick chop to the back of the hunter's neck had him face down in the mud, unconscious for the time being.

Despite the fact that these men were out to kill him and his brothers, it went against every fiber of Leonardo's conscious to leave him to drown in the mud. He grabbed the man by the collar of his jacket and dragged him partially upright against the trunk of a nearby tree, slumping him against it and keeping his mouth and nose high above the ground and any puddles that could potentially form.

Leo quickly ducked behind the tree and pulled his katanas from their sheaths. He could hear someone approaching, most likely attracted to the cussing that the hunter managed to impart before Leo took him out. He would have preferred to drop down on the new comer from above but trying to climb the trees while it was raining was like trying to climb a metal pole slicked down with motor oil. He had learned that shortly after arriving in the rain forest several years ago.

He only had to wait a few more seconds before another hunter came into view. Instead of running to his companion immediately, the hunter scanned the area around the two of them, looking for anything out of place. A smirk broke out on Leo lips and he was silently gratefully that he had gone down to his hidden home to gather up his smock. The muted gray color helped to blend him into the side of the tree he was peeking around with only one eye really visible. The hardest trick to master as a ninja was being able to hide in plain sight.

Not seeing him thanks to his camouflage, the hunter moved to check on his friend and Leo struck. This hunter had been expecting an attack and blocked Leo's arm as he tried to smash the hilt of his sword into the hunter's jaw. For a brief moment the two combatants got to look at each other before they danced apart. Leo already looking for another area to strike and the hunter's eyes grew almost comically wide as he realized who he was looking at.

"Ghost…" he whispered in awe. As Leo moved forward to attack again the hunter yelled at the top of his lungs, "Ghost! Ghost of th-"

Leo pretended to strike with his sword as he kicked out the man's opposite knee. Thrown off balance the man wind milled his arms, dropping the gun in his hand that he hadn't even had a chance to use in favor of trying to remain upright. Leo didn't give him a chance to recover, leaping up he delivered a savage side kick to the man's upper chest, throwing him backward to slam into the tree his companion was still leaning boneless against. He slid down to lay in a heap next to him. Leo didn't bother sticking around to see if the man's cries would bring anymore of the hunters to him. It was time he went to the hunters.

He stayed low, moving in a running half crouch. Using the various planet life around him as cover, Leo easily ran up behind the next nearest hunter and was on him before he even realized that he was being attacked. The Ghost didn't even give the man a chance, striking a pressure point with the hilt of his katana, the man crumpled without even a grunt escaping him.

One of the other hunters had seen Leo's swift attack and opened fire with what sounded like an assault rifle, peppering the entire area around his comrade in an attempt to hit Leo. That would have worked if Leo had stayed put. The ninja had already been moving through the underbrush again when the deafening roar of automatic weapon fire filled the air. Leo's steps hitched slightly in surprise before evening out again. After seeing the remains of the weapons Raph's attackers had been using he wasn't surprised that these hunters were similarly armed.

He put away one katana and reached into the small compartment of his belt where he had a handful surikens waiting to be used. He looped around and came up alongside the hunter, throwing a star when he was about ten feet from the man. It hit the hunter in the back of his trigger hand, causing him to swear but, more importantly, drop the rifle he was holding. His inattention as he tried to remove the throwing star from the back of his hand was all the time Leonardo needed to pounce on him, driving him to the ground where a savage punch to his jaw put him out of the fight.

"Fuacking Infierno!" Leo slowed as he approached a tree and cautiously stood up behind it, wary of anyone being able to see him even in such poor visibility. Using the higher vantage point, he peeked around the tree and saw the outline of two more hunters standing back to back. He could make out one man say something to the other but only pieces of the sentence drifted to him. "Disparar… como… movimiento." Judging by how they both raised their guns slightly in preparation, Leonardo had a pretty good idea of what was said.

Leo flipped his katana back so that the dull edge of the blade ran along his arm and took another suriken from his belt. Taking the tattered edge of his smock in his hand and teeth, he ripped a piece from it. Piercing the bit of cloth with the one of the points of the suriken, he loosely stuffed the rest of it into the small hole in the middle of the throwing star. It wouldn't be the best distraction, but it should be enough to work.

Cautiously, and using every bit of stealth that he had mastered over the years, Leonardo slipped around the tree and approached the two hunters. He made sure to place each step precisely so as to make as little noise as possible and did not move the brush around him anymore than he had too. When he did have to move past a limb, he waited under the man closet to him was looking in the opposite direction. The other hunter he was back too had a very narrow blind spot that Leo made sure to stay in as the two men scanned in the opposite direction as the other.

Slowly, Leo extended the hand holding the suriken and waited for the right moment patiently. That moment came as the hunter was looking back in his general direction. With a flick of his wrist, Leo sent the suriken flying just above the undergrowth. The loosely packed fabric breaking free from the hole holding it and twirled around the suriken as it moved through the air shortly after leaving his hand.

"Alli!" his target cried, causing the man standing back to him to twist around and together they opened fire on the helpless plants and trees before them.

Leo moved as the other hunter moved, quickly slipping around to the men's now unprotected backs. He moved quickly as he came up behind them, jumped between them and drilling the blade of his foot into one man's neck as he slammed the hilt of his sword into the other man's neck. The noise of the gunfire abruptly ceased as both fell to the ground at Leo's feet.

He crouched down, scanning the area around him for anymore hunters or Donatello. He was starting to get worried. While he didn't mind taking out some of the hunters he had been hoping to come across his brother. More out of a need to then anything else, Leo rifled through the backpacks each hunter was wearing, removing various trail rations and a small compact medical kit that he quickly tucked into his satchel. Don would need the medical supplies and Leo knew both of them were going to need the food. He was beginning to get hungry enough that all this activity was making his head reel slightly.

He had just bit into a power bar -taking the momentary break to figure out where Don could have gotten to- when a familiar pained cry suddenly echoed through the night over the storm. Leo dropped the bar and was moving in the direction of the cry without another thought, racing in the direction that he had just heard his brother's voice.

-Break-

Donatello cursed in his head as he struggled to unwind the bolo wrapped around his knees. This was the second time these men had managed to snare him with this kind of weapon and it grated on his already frayed nerves and exhausted mind. He was hampered from freeing himself as his hands trembled in a combination of pain, shock and –even if he didn't want to admit it out loud- just the smallest bits of fear. He was too tired to keep running and with his injuries any kind of fight he tried to put up would just be weak and pathetic.

Despite the noise of the storm overhead, he easily heard the click of a bullet being primed to be fired. He looked up into the blank stare of a gun barrel. Everything seemed to freeze for that one moment and Donatello wondered if he had finally made one mistake to many.

There was a sudden flash as the dim light reflected off of something that came lunging out of the bushes between him and the hunter looming over him. Whatever it was seemed to be no more than a grayish green blur to his tried and dazzled eyes but it had a razor sharp blade that it wielded expertly. Donatello could easily see the blade hit the gun, knocking the barrel up enough that –had it fired- it would have easily gone over his head by several feet.

Not it could fire with the barrel and most of the trigging mechanism cut in half.

What appeared to be nothing more than a swirl of gray fabric carrying a sharp knife quickly stepped between Don and the hunter that was stumbling backwards and reaching behind himself for something, probably the machete these nutcases all seemed to have. The gray blur didn't give him a chance, knocking him back hard and then pouncing on the man, driving him to the ground.

Finally Don managed to unwind the bolo from around his legs and climbed back to his feet. He began to swing the bolo around his hand as if he was preparing to throw it. While it wouldn't be the best hand to hand weapon, it gave him something to fight with at least. Too bad it moved a lot like a nunchaku, he was horrible at using Mikey's weapon of choice.

There was movement out of the corner of his eye and Don turned to see that another hunter had entered the fray. He couldn't see the outline enough to tell what it was but Don was sure that a rifle was pointed at him and -most likely- was either high caliber or an automatic, neither of which he wanted shot at him. He readied the bolo, spinning it a bit faster before letting it fly, aiming for the man's torso area and hopefully the gun. What he wasn't expecting was for the gun to go off at the same time he let go of the bolo.

Expecting the shot to connect, Don was unprepared to suddenly be knocked off to the side. Whatever the gray blur was, it had knocked him out of danger. That had been really thoughtful of it, except that Don didn't have any time to protect his head from the fall. He landed wrong, and even though he hadn't hit his head hard, it was still enough to send his exhausted and battered mind spinning off into unconsciousness. He did recognize the blue banded eyes looking down at him in concern and managed to whisper his brother's name as he fainted.

"Leo?"

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Translations (if I did them right) in order of appearance.

"Fucking hell!"

The full sentence that Leo only heard part of, "Shoot as soon as you see movement."

"There!"


End file.
